Sgraffito in Segovia

Sgraffito 

Sgraffito is a technique either of wall decor, produced by applying layers of plaster tinted in contrasting colors to a moistened surface, or in ceramics, by applying to an unfired ceramic body two successive layers of contrasting slip, and then in either case scratching so as to produce an outline drawing.

Sgraffito on walls has been used in Europe since classical times, and it was common in Italy in the 16th century. In combination with ornamental decoration these techniques formed an alternative to the prevailing painting of walls. Of late there has been an unmistakable growing interest in this old technique. The technical procedure is relatively simple, and the procedures are similar to the painting of frescoes. In Spain, although you can see in Castilian-Leonese cities (Salamanca, Valladolid and Ávila) and Catalan cities like Barcelona, ​​Segovia is the principal city that have used this technique. The Mudejar culture used this technology in their buildings to compensate the poverty of the materials used in the construction with the ornamental wealth of the fronts, decorated with sgraffitos. The Muslims seated in Segovia during the Reconquest, were the ones which taught this wall technology to us. During the Renaissance, a high degree of perfection was reached and the use of the sgraffito technique was spread to churches, monasteries and palaces, since his walls were made up of masonry and were covered by rich sgraffitos.